Manual control and reel for tethered powered model airplanes



J. J. RU

MANUAL CONTROL POWER Fi SSELL ET AL 2,602,604 AND REEL. FOR TETHERED PLANES 1947 July 8, 1952 ED MODEL AIR led May ,24,

Y R \Y INVENTORS fClA/efipussaz. W1 0 Y duke/20555 BYW/ ' ATTORNEY Patented July 8, 1952 MANUAL CONTROL AND REEL For.

TETHEREDI rownrnn. MODEL AIR- PLANES .JackJ.

Russell and an. e. Russell, vi. Des Moines, Iowa Application May 24, 1947, Serial no. 750,330

4 Claims; (01. 242-96) The principal object of this invention is to provide an inexpensive light weight manually operated control and reel for tethering powered model airplanes in flight.

A further object of our invention is to provide a model airplane tethering control and reel that may be constructed of substantially all wood or like inexpensive material. I

A still further object of-our invention is to provide a model airplane control and reel that is capable of being staked to the ground in an upright position when not in-actual use of controlling a model airplane in flight. I

A further object of our invention is to provide a modelairplane control and reel that requires little space in the pocket and may be easily;

and quickly disassembled for shipment or stor-' age.

Still further objects of our invention are'to provide a control and reel for tethered model airplanes that is economical in manufacture, durable in use, and refined in appearance. 7

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Our invention consists in the construction, arrangement'and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects "contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in our claims and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is aside view of our control and. reel.

Fig. 2. is a perspective view of our device with the wire or cable unwound and ready for use.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the device and'illustrates its general construction.

Fig. 51 .is a longitudinal sectional view of our reel and control taken on line 4-4 of Fi 3.

Fig. 5 is another side view of our device with the stake pin extended.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the device taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 5, and more fully illustrates the operation of the stake pin.

To successfully fly powered model airplanes at the end of wires, cables, strings, or other suitable elongated strands, a reel control is necessary. Most controls, however, are complicated, are subject to over-control, and are so expensive as to be prohibitive for many model airplane fliers. We have overcome such objections by providing an inexpensive, adjustable airplane control and cable reel.

Referring to the drawings, we have used the numeral ID to generally designate the body portion of the device, which isa disc construction, as shown in Fig. 2. The numeral ll designates a hand hold out out of this portion l8, as shown in Fig. l, and which is positioned between the periphery of the disc member and its center. This hand hold has its side nearest the periphery of the disc scalloped to fit the fingers of the user and extends downwardly atan angle to provide a natural position for the hand when in use. The numeral l2 designates a grip handle rotatably secured to the center of the member ID and extending horizontally to one side of the same. The numeral l3 designates a handle knob rotatably secured to the side of the disc body In opposite from the side of the grip handle l2 and at a position near the periphery of the member l0 andsubstantially diametrically opposite from the hand hold H. The numerals l4, l5, and I6 designate three spaced apart circular flanges on the periphery of the body I 0, as shown in Fig. 3. These three flanges create the two cable grooves '11 and 18 for winding the cable or like thereon when the same is not beingused.

The numeral 19 designatesa cable notch'formed in the flange [5, as shown in Fig. 4. The numeral 20 designates a plurality'of pegs spaced apart and extending transversely through the member Ill near its periphery, as shown in Fig. 5. These pegs'2li communicate with the reel grooves I1 and I8 and are designed to selectivelyhave the wire orcables 2| and 22 secured to them, as shown in Fig. 4. By providing a plurality of these cable attaching pegs, the cables or wires 2| and 22 may be placed close together or relatively far-apart at the points where they are secured to the reel. The closer these two cables or wires are secured together at the reel the less sensitive the control will be, while on the other hand, if the cables are placed relatively far apart on the device the control of the airplane will be more sensitive. When the model airplane is in flight and secured to the two control cables or wires 2| and 22 the device is grasped by the use of the hand hold II. By slightly rotating the device and by lateral movement the airplane can be successfully controlled in circular flight, i. e., made to climb, descend, or like. When it is desired to reel the cables or wires 2| or 22'onto the reel the cable 22 is first placed under the notch [9. This brings the two cables in. close proximity and starts them winding evenly relative to their length, one in the groove l1 and the other in the groove l8. This notch is important as it not only guides the wires or cables into their respective grooves, but otherwise one cable by being far apart from the other cable would start to wind on the reel substantially before the other cable started to wind, thereby preventing even longitudinal winding of the members on the reel. To wind or unwind the device one hand grasps the handle l2 and the other hand of the user grasps the knob l3 and cranks or rotates the reel on the handle I2, thereby bringing the cables or wires onto the reel or removing them from the reel.

In flying model airplanes considerable preparation is necessary. During this preliminary.

period it is not desirable to lay the reel in the mud, dirt, or dust of the field. Wehave eliminated this problem by providing a stake pin 23, which when in extended position, may be forced into the ground, thereby supporting and. holding the reel and control in proper horizontal position above the ground. This stake pin ex-- tends through a hole 24 in the body [0 and com municates with the forward side of the hand hold II, as shown in Fig. 4. The numeral 25 designates a handle on the upper end of the stake pin 23 formed by bending its upper end portion. at right angles. This handle 25 facilitates themovement of the pin upwardly to an inoperative position, as shown in Fig. -4, and to an extended position, as shown in Fig. 5. Also, by turning the pin to the side to engage the-depression 26 when the pin is in an inoperative position, the pin will be yieldingly held in such position. Also, when the-pin is in an extended position this portion 25 is turned to engage the depression 27, as shown inFig. 6, for holding-the pin in suchextended position. When it is desired to reciprocate the pin from one to its other position the member 25 is rotated outwardly to a position as shownin Fig. 4.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of our improved manual control and reel for tethered powered model airplanes without departing from the real spirit and purpose of our invention, and it is our intention to-cover by our claims any-modifled forms of structure or use of. mechanical equivalents which may be reasonably included withintheir scope. 1 7

We claim: I

1. In a device of theclass described, a disc member, a groove in the periphery of said'disc member, a means for attaching two elongated strands to said disc member, a hand holdextending transversely through' said disc member adjacent its periphery and at one side of :its transverse dead center, and a stake pin slidably mounted in said disc member and having its free and capable of passing through the pe riphery of said disc member.

2. In a device of the class described, a disc member, a groove in the periphery of said disc member, a means for attaching two elongated strands to said disc member, a: hand hold extending transversely through said disc member, a stake pin slidably mounted in said disc member having its upper end portion communicating with the inside of said hand hold, and a handle member on the upper end of said stake pin located inside said hand hold.

3. In a device of the class described, a disc member, a groove in the periphery oi. said disc member, a means for attaching two elongated strands to said disc member, a hand hold extending transversely through said disc member, a stake pin slidably mounted in said disc member having its upper end portion communicating Withthe inside of said hand hold, a handle member on the upper end of said stake pin located inside said hand hold, and a means for securing said stake pin in dififerent positions of its sliding movement.

4. In a device of the class described, adisc member, a groove inthe periphery of said disc member, a means for attaching an. elongated strand to said disc member, a hand hold extending transversely through said disc member, and a stake pin slidably mounted in said disc member having its upper end portion capable of communicating with the inside of said hand hold.

JACK J. RUSSELL. CLAIR B. RUSSELL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

- UNITED STATES PATENTS Asbill Dec. 9, 1947 

